Improvement in lamps



R. S. MERRILL.

Lamp.' NQ. 56,974.` 4 Patented Aug. 7, 1866.

IINITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RUFUS S. MERRILL, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN LAMPS.

- k Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 56,974, datedAugust 7, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, RUEUs S. MERRELL, of Boston, in the county of Suffolkand State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Fluid- Lamps; and I hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to that class of fluid'- lamps iu which a packingof cotton or other suitable material is used to'take up the volatileiuid and to supply it, when needed, to the wicking. This arrangementlessens greatly the danger attending the use of naphtha and other highlyvolatile and inflammable uids, for as all the duid is turned out of thelamp except that which is taken up and absorbed by the packing, if byaccident the lamp be broken, the fluid cannot fly upon. or be scatteredover the person holding the lamp, and if the iiuid happens to becomeignited the lire is confined to the small compass of the packing, andconsequently can be easily extinguished.

In order to keep this packing from pressing -upon the wicking, and toprevent the packing from coming out' of the lamp, a tube is placed inthe lamp, which incloses the wick, and extends from the opening in thetop of the lamp nearly tothe bottom. The tube is of such a size as tof1tthe opening, and the space between it and the bottom of the lamp issufflcient to allow the wicking to draw from the packing the uid neededfor consumption. My invention relates more especially to this tube andto the method of securing it in the lamp.

Ordinarily this tube is secured to the lamp by solder, and is thus xed,and not easily adjustable or moved; but by my invention it is secured tothe collar which fits over the top of the lamp without the aid of anysuch means The central tube or cylinder is made with a flange around itsupper end, and is split down the sides at this end far enough to givethe sides, after being so split and spread apart, the action of aspring. The tube thus formed is pressed down into and through the collarabove mentioned until the tlan ge on the upper end of the tube comestothe groove formed in the lower part of the collar. The upper portionof the tube, having an elastic springlike action, as above explained,now forces the flange on the upper end of the tube into the groove, andthe tube is thus attached to the collar and held rmly in place.

To enable the nature of my invention to be more clearly comprehended, Iwill describe it by reference to the accompanying drawings, in Which-Figure l represents, in section, the collar and tube separately; andFig.2 shows, in section,

all the parts combined of my improvement, as well as of the whole lamp.

The collar a, which iits over the top of the glass lamp m, is like anyordinaryl collar, with this exception. Just below the female screw o,into which the male screw on the burner n fits. is a groove, b, whichmay be either turned, or, preferably, struck up on the collar.

The tube d, which is of any suitable length and diameter to correspondwith the size of the collar, has formed around its upper end a flange,e, which, when the collar and tube are put together, ts in the groove b.From lthe upper end of the tube and down the sides extend severallongitudinal slits, g, which should be equidistant from each other andof equal length. A sufficient number of slits or grooves are cut toenable the upper end to close enough to allow the flange to pass overthe female screw c without difficulty. The upper en.d,-when thus split,is spread open by any proper tool, so as to give a spring-action to thesplit sides for the purposes above mentioned.

In Fig. 2 the various parts of the lamp constructed in accordance withmy invention are shown. The cap c is secured firmly to the top of theglass lamp m, and the packing p is put in. The fluid may then be pouredin upon the packing, care being taken, before the lamp is closed andready for use, to empty the lamp of all the iiuid except such as isabsorbed and taken up by the packing. After the packing is prepared thetube el is inserted in the collar a, and forced through the same. Thespringiness of its sides causes them to yield until the flange e reachesthe groove b in the collar,

AWhen the split sides expand and spread apart and force the flange intothe groove. By this simple means the tube is held firmly in the lamp,and no recourse need be had to the old methods of fastening by solder orother like means. tube from the lamp, it will be seen that this canreadily be accomplished on account of the construction of the sides,which admits of the upper end being compressed, as has been fully setforth.

I consider the method just explained as peculiarly adapted for use inglass lamps, though it may be employed to equal advantage in lamps madeof metal. Heretofore, to my knowledge, no successful method of fasteningthis tube in glass lamps has been discovered, and in metallic lamps thetube has been soldered to the lamp instead of secured to the collar, asin my invention. By securing the tube in the manner I have described theexcessive pressure of the packing upon the wicking is avoided, and thepacking is prevented If it is desired to Withdraw the from comin g outof the lamp, While at the same time it can furnish the needful supply ofuid to the wicking.

Having thus described my invention and the manner in whichthe same is ormay be carried into effect, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, is-

l. rIhe combination,with a collar ttin g over the top of a lamp, of acentral tube secured to said collar and extending therefrom toward thebottom of the lamp, substantially as and for the purpbses herein shownand described.

2. In combination with a lamp-col1ar provided with a groove, or theequivalent thereof, as herein described, the cylinder or tube having alian ge around one end and longitudinal slits or grooves in its sides,the Whole being arranged for operation as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification beforetwo subscribing Witnesses. l

RUFUS S. MERRILL.

Vitnesses:

C. A. SMITH, FRANK I. COLLINS.

